I used to work at Victoria’s Secret – now I design bras which ‘grow’ with your body, it’s the only set you’ll need
“THINK about the underwear you keep in your drawer. You probably keep about 50 pairs, but there are only a few that you love,” LoveSuze lingerie founder Suzanne Macbale said.
“But why? Why do you only wear those?” she asked during her exclusive interview with The U.S. Sun.
Just like we may be picky with our men, we’re all even more choosy with the underwear we want to wear every day, and we don’t realize it.
Some women are die-hard thong enthusiasts even on their period, while others can’t bear to wear anything other than their favorite pair of seamless boyshorts.
Though it’s typical to have preferences, the real question is: why is there not underwear which can satisfy both flattery and comfort priorities?
According to Suzanne, it’s because they’re not designed to be flex-sized.
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As someone who worked for two dominating underwear brands, Suzanne dedicated her whole life to a passion that started when she was old enough to know what lingerie was.
“I always loved it in general. When I was younger, I wasn’t allowed to wear it, I had really strict parents, and when someone says you can’t, you get really obsessed with it,” she admitted.
After five years at Calvin Klein and 12 years at Victoria’s Secret, the forward-thinking fashion fan developed a desire to transform the market, and the way to do that was with flex-sizing.
Suzanne’s role at Victoria’s Secret was production specific.
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She focused on market analysis, looking at where lingerie trends were going and how the brand could provide exactly what customers were looking for.
Suzanne found a need for the brand to recognize this concept of the ever-changing body.
She understood from her personal experience, that on any given day a woman’s body will fit their clothing differently.
And the ever-changing body doesn’t just refer to gaining weight, growing, or shrinking.
It includes the fractional changes that can occur within an hour after you eat or work out.
Suzanne proclaimed: “I just don’t think at the time, Victoria’s Secret was ready for that move, this idea of a flexible fit and how women’s bodies change.
“At the time no one was moving in that direction, but I was like this is where the market is going. I left because I knew this was the right path. I studied the market. I saw this coming.”
So, the expert branched out and created her own concept brand LoveSuze in January 2019.
But before she could design and manufacture her undergarment collections, Suzanne needed to know more about how women felt about current lingerie options.
“I started doing focus groups with friends, and I would get people together, and I would ask questions,” Suzanne explained.
One particular focus group sent Suzanne’s inclination ahead.
The aspiring designer, at the time, had asked select women to bring in their favorite pair of underwear.
And one woman showed up with two: one for when she was on her period and another when she wasn’t bloated.
Suzanne asked herself: “Why can’t we design bras and underwear that are flexible and fit and work all the time so that you can feel comfortable and sexy every day of your life?”
After that, she knew what she needed to develop: flex-sizing.
Underwear and bra materials needed to be able to “recover.”
As most women experience frequent and abrupt bloating, whether they’re on their period or not, Suzanne wanted her collection to fit regardless of how a body changes.
“Your stomach is flat when you wake up in the morning, and then by the time you go to bed, you’re a little bloated. It grows as you grow,” Suzanne exclaimed.
Being a mother with two daughters and watching her body go through the stages of pregnancy and post-partum, motivated her too.
Suzanne always felt herself gravitating toward the underwear that was solely comfortable.
However, she was never able to find a pair of underwear that fit her the same every day no matter how she was feeling.
With LoveSuze lingerie, the size chart ranges from XS to 3X, yet every pair will expand and contract with the shape of your body.
The style proclaimed: “I do also think pinpointing your size to an exact measurement doesn’t work because of how your body fluctuates, so you’ll never see that exact size.”
Suzanne’s extensive expertise in factory production also led her to understand that human error played a big role in sizing issues as well.
She knew it was impossible that exact precision would ever be attained in terms of item measurements.
But more than that, Suzanne recognized the constant issues women would run into.
“I think the problem is knowing how to shop for your size, bust size, hip, cup, and all of that,” she said.
According to Suzanne, LoveSuze is “aggressively” changing that.
Between raw materials and varying cuts, the designer mixes sexy details with stretchy elements making it obvious how every undergarment will flatter your shape, and which ones you should choose.
She pulls inspiration from street-wear, ready-to-wear, and social media.
Suzanne admitted: “Lingerie for sure is different now. It’s not what it was when I started my career and I’m so proud of where it’s going. I know my daughters are going to grow up in a safer space.”
Now, the idea is to feel comfortable and sexy in your underwear for yourself and no one else.
And that all comes with flex-sizing for the ever-changing body.
The lingerie market has developed a stigma of only being for women.
Yet, Suzanne believed that there have always been men that were buying pieces.
Of course, there are the guys that buy underwear for their girlfriends and wives, but there are some that are buying for themselves too.
“We’re starting to see men that are buying them for themselves because the flex-sizing appeals to them,” Suzanne proclaimed.
“It works better for men if they want to wear lingerie, bikinis, or thongs.”
The transformative designer continues to create styles that are both original and on-trend.
She doesn’t intentionally design gender-inclusive pieces.
Suzanne explained: “I think it naturally just happens. I don’t think I think about it. It naturally will appeal to everyone because it’s a flexible fit. I think about how it’s going to fit everyone.”
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After all, as someone who knows first-hand how necessary flex-sizing is from personal experience, her initial focus was providing alternatives for women that were ready for a change.
“I want women to feel confident. And if I could give that to one woman a week, then I’ve done my job,” Suzanne disclosed.